House File 4 - Introduced
HOUSE FILE 4
BY WHEELER, HOLT, STONE,
DUNWELL, MOMMSEN, FISHER,
COLLINS, MOORE, VONDRAN,
WULF, SHIPLEY, BRADLEY,
DEYOE, GRABER, RINKER,
WILLS, JOHNSON, GUSTAFSON,
GEHLBACH, NORDMAN, YOUNG,
OSMUNDSON, HENDERSON,
WOOD, WINDSCHITL, GRASSLEY,
BOSSMAN, and GERHOLD
A BILL FOR
1 An Act modifying requirements related to teacher intern
2 license programs and licenses and authorizations issued
3 by the board of educational examiners and establishing a
4 temporary initial teaching license to be issued by the board
5 of educational examiners to applicants who complete an
6 alternative teacher certification program.
7 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:
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1 Section 1. Section 256.16, subsection 1, Code 2023, is
2 amended by adding the following new paragraph:
3 NEW PARAGRAPH. m. If a higher education institution
4 providing practitioner preparation offers a program that is
5 designed to assist students in attaining a teacher intern
6 license from the board of educational examiners, the program
7 shall require participants to satisfy all of the following
8 requirements before completing the program:
9 (1) A participant in the program must have graduated from
10 an accredited or state-approved college or university and must
11 meet the requirements for an endorsement area approved by the
12 board of educational examiners for a teacher intern license.
13 (2) A participant in the program must have at least three
14 years of post-baccalaureate work experience.
15 (3) A participant in the program must submit with the
16 application to the program a copy of an offer of employment
17 from a school.
18 (4) A participant in the program must have completed the
19 required pedagogy training.
20 (5) A participant in the program must work under the
21 supervision of a teacher leader assigned by the school district
22 or accredited nonpublic school, including during co-teaching
23 and planning time.
24 (6) A participant in the program must complete at least
25 fifteen additional hours of coursework.
26 Sec. 2. Section 272.2, subsection 1, Code 2023, is amended
27 by adding the following new paragraph:
28 NEW PARAGRAPH. d. Rules adopted pursuant to this subsection
29 establishing criteria for applicants for licenses who have
30 completed an accredited or state-approved teacher preparation
31 program and who are applying for the applicant’s first Iowa
32 teaching license shall not require the applicant to be an Iowa
33 resident if the applicant provides the board with a copy of an
34 offer of employment as a teacher from a school located in this
35 state.
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1 Sec. 3. Section 272.2, subsection 13, Code 2023, is amended
2 to read as follows:
3 13. Adopt rules to provide for nontraditional preparation
4 options for licensing persons who hold a bachelor’s degree
5 or higher from an accredited or state-approved college or
6 university, who do not meet other requirements for licensure.
7 The rules shall, at a minimum, require the board to do all of
8 the following:
9 a. Issue a teacher intern license for instruction in grades
10 six through twelve to an applicant who has enrolled in a
11 program established pursuant to section 256.16, subsection 1,
12 paragraph “m”.
13 b. Allow a licensee who has attained a teacher intern
14 license pursuant to paragraph “a” to apply for an initial
15 teaching license if the school that employed the licensee
16 during the licensee’s completion of the program established
17 pursuant to section 256.16, subsection 1, paragraph “m”, and
18 the higher education institution that operated the program,
19 recommend that the licensee be allowed to apply for an initial
20 teaching license.
21 Sec. 4. Section 272.2, Code 2023, is amended by adding the
22 following new subsection:
23 NEW SUBSECTION. 26. Adopt rules pursuant to chapter
24 17A that allow an individual seeking a career and technical
25 secondary authorization to apply, and if eligible, be issued
26 the secondary authorization prior to accepting an offer of
27 employment with a school.
28 Sec. 5. NEW SECTION. 272.17 Temporary initial license for
29 applicants who complete an alternative teacher certification
30 program.
31 1. The board shall grant a temporary initial teaching
32 license to an applicant who meets all of the following
33 requirements:
34 a. The applicant shall hold a bachelor’s degree from an
35 accredited college or university.
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1 b. The applicant shall successfully complete an alternative
2 teacher certification program that includes all of the
3 following:
4 (1) The required content training in the area in which the
5 applicant seeks to be licensed.
6 (2) Pedagogy training, including an examination, that
7 teaches effective instructional delivery, classroom management
8 and organization, assessment, instructional design, and
9 professional learning and leadership.
10 2. To be considered an alternative teacher certification
11 program for purposes of this section, an alternative teacher
12 certification program shall meet all of the following
13 requirements:
14 a. The alternative teacher certification program must
15 operate in at least five states.
16 b. The alternative teacher certification program must have
17 been in operation for at least ten years.
18 3. An individual who successfully completes an alternative
19 teacher certification program and who is granted a temporary
20 initial teaching license by the board under this section is
21 authorized to teach the subjects and grade levels that the
22 individual successfully completed during the alternative
23 teacher certification program.
24 4. The board shall treat an individual who successfully
25 completes an alternative teacher certification program and who
26 is granted a temporary initial teaching license by the board
27 under this section in the same manner as an individual who
28 completes a traditional teacher preparation program and who
29 receives an initial teaching license, including during the
30 process of converting the temporary initial teaching license
31 to a standard teaching license.
32 Sec. 6. Section 272.28, Code 2023, is amended to read as
33 follows:
34 272.28 Licensure beyond a temporary initial license or an
35 initial license.
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1 1. Requirements for teacher licensure beyond a temporary
2 initial license or an initial license shall include successful
3 completion of a beginning teacher mentoring and induction
4 program approved by the state board of education pursuant to
5 section 284.5; or two years of successful teaching experience
6 in a school district with an approved career paths, leadership
7 roles, and compensation framework or approved comparable system
8 as provided in section 284.15; or evidence of not less than
9 three years of successful teaching experience at any of the
10 following:
11 a. An accredited nonpublic school in this state.
12 b. A preschool program approved by the United States
13 department of health and human services.
14 c. Preschool programs at school districts approved to
15 participate in the preschool program under chapter 256C.
16 d. Shared visions programs receiving grants from the child
17 development coordinating council under section 256A.3.
18 e. Preschool programs receiving moneys from the school
19 ready children grants account of the early childhood Iowa fund
20 created in section 256I.11.
21 2. A teacher from an accredited nonpublic school or another
22 state or country is exempt from the requirement of subsection 1
23 if the teacher can document three years of successful teaching
24 experience and meet or exceed the requirements contained in
25 rules adopted under this chapter for endorsement and licensure.
26 EXPLANATION
27 The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with
28 the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly.
29 This bill modifies requirements related to teacher intern
30 license programs and licenses and authorizations issued by
31 the board of educational examiners (BOEE) and establishes a
32 temporary initial teaching license to be issued by the BOEE to
33 applicants who complete an alternative teacher certification
34 program.
35 The bill provides that if a higher education institution
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1 providing practitioner preparation offers a program that is
2 designed to assist students in attaining a teacher intern
3 license from the BOEE, the program shall require participants
4 to satisfy certain specified requirements.
5 Current law requires the BOEE to adopt rules to provide
6 for nontraditional preparation options for licensing persons
7 who hold a bachelor’s degree from an accredited college
8 or university and who do not meet other requirements for
9 licensure. The bill provides that the rules shall require
10 the BOEE to issue a teacher intern license to an applicant
11 who has completed a program offered by a higher education
12 institution providing practitioner preparation that is designed
13 to assist students in attaining a teacher intern license. The
14 bill requires the BOEE to allow a licensee who has attained
15 a teacher intern license under such a program to apply for
16 an initial teaching license if the school that employed
17 the licensee during the program and the higher education
18 institution recommend that the licensee be allowed to apply.
19 Current law authorizes the BOEE to issue a regional exchange
20 teaching license to an applicant who has completed a teacher
21 preparation program outside of the state and who is applying
22 for the applicant’s first Iowa teaching license if, among
23 other requirements, the applicant is a resident of the state.
24 The bill removes the requirement that such an applicant be a
25 resident of this state if the applicant provides the BOEE with
26 a copy of an offer of employment as a teacher from a school
27 located in this state.
28 The bill requires the BOEE to adopt rules that allow
29 an individual seeking a career and technical secondary
30 authorization to apply, and if eligible, be issued the
31 secondary authorization prior to accepting an offer of
32 employment with a school.
33 The bill requires the BOEE to grant a temporary initial
34 teaching license to an applicant who holds a bachelor’s degree
35 from an accredited college or university and successfully
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1 completes an alternative teacher certification program. The
2 bill describes what an alternative teacher certification
3 program must include.
4 The bill establishes requirements for alternative teacher
5 certification programs, including that the program must operate
6 in at least five states and must have been in operation for at
7 least 10 years.
8 The bill provides that an individual who successfully
9 completes an alternative teacher certification program and who
10 is granted a temporary initial teaching license is authorized
11 to teach the subjects and grade levels that the individual
12 successfully completed during the program.
13 The bill requires the BOEE to treat an individual who
14 successfully completes an alternative teacher certification
15 program and who is granted a temporary initial teaching license
16 in the same manner as an individual who completes a traditional
17 teacher preparation program and who receives an initial
18 teaching license, including during the process of converting
19 the temporary initial teaching license to a standard teaching
20 license.
21 Code section 272.28 establishes requirements for teacher
22 licensure beyond an initial license. Pursuant to current
23 Code section 272.28, the requirements for teacher licensure
24 beyond an initial license include successful completion of a
25 beginning teacher mentoring and induction program; two years
26 of successful teaching experience in a school district with
27 an approved career paths, leadership roles, and compensation
28 framework; or evidence of not less than three years of
29 successful teaching experience with certain specified programs.
30 The bill modifies Code section 272.28 to impose these same
31 requirements on individuals attempting to obtain teacher
32 licensure beyond a temporary initial teaching license.
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Statutes affected:
Introduced: 256.16, 272.2, 272.28